1922-04-02 Targa Florio Alfa Romeo 40-60 HP Giuseppe Campari

The ALFA 40/60 HP is a road car and race car made by

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

car manufacturer ALFA (later to become

Alfa Romeo Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A. () is an Italian luxury car manufacturer and a subsidiary of Stellantis. The company was founded on 24 June 1910, in Milan, Italy. "Alfa" is an acronym of its founding name, "Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili." "A ...

). This model was made between 1913 and 1922 and was designed by Giuseppe Merosi, as were all other Alfas at that time. The 40/60 HP has a 6082 cc straight-four engine with overhead valves, which produced and its top speed was . The 40-60 HP Corsa racing version had and a top speed of , and it also won its own category in the Parma-Berceto race. Alfa 40-60 HP Aerodinamica

In 1914 the milanese count Marco Ricotti commissioned to

Carrozzeria Castagna Carrozzeria Castagna is an Italian coachbuilding company based in Milan, Italy. History The company history began in 1849 when Carlo Castagna bought the Ferrari coachbuilding business. Carrozzeria Castagna built the first coach automobile with a ...

the ALFA 40/60 HP Aerodinamica (also known as Siluro Ricotti), a prototype model which could reach top speed. A replica of that car was created in the 1970s, and now it is shown in the Alfa Romeo Historical Museum. 40/60 HP production and development was interrupted by the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, but resumed briefly afterwards. The 40-60 HP Corsa now had and a top speed of around .

Giuseppe Campari Giuseppe Campari (8 June 1892 – 10 September 1933) was an Italian opera singer and Grand Prix motor racing driver. Racing career Born near the city of Lodi southwest of Milan, as a teenager he went to work for the Alfa Romeo automobile compa ...

won the 1920 and 1921 races at

Mugello The Mugello is a historic region and valley in northern Tuscany, in Italy, corresponding to the course of the River Sieve. It is located to the north of the city of Florence and includes the northernmost portion of the Metropolitan City of Fl ...

with this car.

Specifications

The 40-60 HP was based on a ladder chassis of C-shaped stamped steel rails. Its engine was a (bore and stroke 110 x 160 mm, compression ratio 4.35:1)

overhead valve An overhead valve (OHV) engine, sometimes called a ''pushrod engine'', is a piston engine whose valves are located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier flathead engines, where the valves were located b ...

inline-four cylinder, fed by a single vertical carburettor. The '' en bloc'' cylinder block and

cylinder head In an internal combustion engine, the cylinder head (often abbreviated to simply "head") sits above the cylinders and forms the roof of the combustion chamber. In sidevalve engines, the head is a simple sheet of metal; whereas in more modern ...

were split in two groups of two cylinders, and made of

cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron– carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impur ...

; the crankcase was cast

aluminium Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. I ...

, incorporating the four engine mountings. The two in-block camshafts were driven by a

gear train A gear train is a mechanical system formed by mounting gears on a frame so the teeth of the gears engage. Gear teeth are designed to ensure the pitch circles of engaging gears roll on each other without slipping, providing a smooth transmission ...

located at the front of the engine. The driveline comprised a dry multi-plate clutch, a four-speed

gearbox Propulsion transmission is the mode of transmitting and controlling propulsion power of a machine. The term ''transmission'' properly refers to the whole drivetrain, including clutch, gearbox, prop shaft (for rear-wheel drive vehicles), differe ...

and a one-piece

propeller shaft A drive shaft, driveshaft, driving shaft, tailshaft (Australian English), propeller shaft (prop shaft), or Cardan shaft (after Girolamo Cardano) is a component for transmitting mechanical power and torque and rotation, usually used to connect ...

, spinning inside a tube attached to the rear differential housing. At its open end, towards the gearbox, this tube forked out into two ends which, linked to the chassis, located the rear axle. The gearbox was positioned towards the middle of the chassis, almost underneath the driver, rather than in block with the engine—to which it was connected by a short prop shaft. Front and rear

solid axle Solid is one of the four fundamental states of matter (the others being liquid, gas, and plasma). The molecules in a solid are closely packed together and contain the least amount of kinetic energy. A solid is characterized by structura ...

s were sprung on longitudinal semi-elliptic

leaf spring A leaf spring is a simple form of spring commonly used for the suspension in wheeled vehicles. Originally called a ''laminated'' or ''carriage spring'', and sometimes referred to as a semi-elliptical spring, elliptical spring, or cart spring, i ...

s. Brakes were drums on the rear wheels, with both pedal and hand controls. The wheels were 5.5x19" Sankey-type pressed steel.

40-60 HP tipo corsa

The ''tipo corsa'' sat on a shortened

wheelbase In both road and rail vehicles, the wheelbase is the horizontal distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels. For road vehicles with more than two axles (e.g. some trucks), the wheelbase is the distance between the steering (front ...

of , instead of the road car's .

Kerb weight Vehicle weight is a measurement of wheeled motor vehicles; either an actual measured weight of the vehicle under defined conditions or a gross weight rating for its weight carrying capacity. Curb or kerb weight Curb weight (U.S. English) or kerb ...

was versus . The racing-prepared engine was fitted with two carburettors and had a 5.50:1 compression ratio. It produced ; after the war, for the 1920–22 races, it was brought to . Top speed was . The

final drive A drivetrain (also frequently spelled as drive train or sometimes drive-train) is the group of components that deliver mechanical power from the prime mover to the driven components. In automotive engineering, the drivetrain is the components o ...

ratio was 18/49 instead of the standard 17/49. The Sankey steel wheels were replaced by 6.0x20" knock-off

wire wheel Wire wheels, wire-spoked wheels, tension-spoked wheels, or "suspension" wheels are wheels whose rims connect to their hubs by wire spokes. Although these wires are generally stiffer than a typical wire rope, they function mechanically the sa ...

s. Fuel tank capacity was expanded from the standard to .

References

Notes

Bibliography

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External links

ALFA 40-60 HP Castagna Siluro Aerodinamica 1914 on autoconcept-reviews.com
{{Alfa Romeo Pre War Timeline 40 60 HP Cars introduced in 1913 1920s cars